"Obama is no Democrat"

[ProSense]

Gee, thanks for letting us know. If only we gullible Democrats had known this before turning out to guarantee his re-election by a landslide, we could have save ourselves from this devastating revelation.

Thanks Obama!

[Cali_Democrat]

1. Obama is a Nixonian war criminal who assassinates journalists

It's true. I read it right here on DU

[Buzz Clik]

4. +1

I read the same thing. And laughed. Just before I trashed the thread.

[Buzz Clik]

2. Who are you quoting?

[Skraxx]

3. Only Whiny Do-Nothing, Dead Enders On DU Know Who The REAL Democrats Are!

You're only a real Dem if you make the world perfect for THEM! And have it done YESTERDAY!

[Buzz Clik]

5. How much did Monsanto pay you to say that?

[Skraxx]

7. I Got Paid In Corn

[Buzz Clik]

51. Next time ask for GMO wheat. It's far more rare. Worth a ton on the black market.

[G_j]

55. actually it appears that

PS is the only real Dem.

[Yavin4]

61. Or Rand-Ites and their Liberal Followers n/t

[Number23]

74. LOL! Nail meet hammer!!

Only Whiny Do-Nothing, Dead Enders On DU Know Who The REAL Democrats Are!

[Harmony Blue]

6. Link?

Where is your link or is this an opinion post?

[leveymg]

8. Another straw man. Unfortunately, he's about as a good as we deserve, right now.

A lot of the things that people have begun to notice that they don't like have been growing for decades. It's the hope for change that's wearing off.

I wish that people would get out of talking about American politicians in good-evil absolutes. The system and the country have been screwed up for a long time, and that's pretty uniformly distributed top to bottom among the population.

You're just setting out kindling for another flame war, PS. What is this the 10th in 2 days?

[ProSense]

9. No,

"Another straw man. "

...as much as you'd like to believe that, it's not a "straw man."

He does not sound much like a Democrat to me.

<...

There is no doubt that Barack Obama is a CORPORATIST not a Democrat.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023075013

Still, it's funny: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023075013#post1

Thanks Obama!

[leveymg]

22. Thanks for pointing out that thread. Here's what I posted there.

I notice the usual Booster Club Boys and Girls aren't addressing the specifics of this list - just the conclusion:

He does not sound much like a Democrat to me.

The really sad thing is that by this list, he is a pretty typical mainstream Democratic politician. Most of this has been growing worse for decades. He can certainly be blamed for swimming with the tide rather being the mythical Hercules figure -- bender of rivers, stable washer -- some of us expected to be electing President of the United States. But, yes, he has disappointed most of us by not being seen trying to swim against the current to rescue more drowning victims.

Forget Hercules. Obama's not even the Lifeguard we thought he'd be.

[ProSense]

23. So

"The really sad thing is that by this list, he is a pretty typical mainstream Democratic politician"

...you disagree with the claim that Obama is not a Democrat.

Frankly, the only thing that long list of talking points, rehashed to death, proves is that someone isn't following the news.

"Lets big pharma make huge profits by charging exorbitant amounts for prescription drugs."

What a completely fact-free claim. The poster needs to become familiar with the huge drugs savings enacted by this President for Medicare and Medicaid recipients, and the health care law.

[leveymg]

26. Yes, I disagree with that.

He's a Democrat of a type. What type? Well, not to be dismissive, but that's a broad, complicated subject and there isn't time to go into that right now. Same thing with HCR.

I'm glad you're happy with what we've got at the top. I suspect you feel a bit lonely these days.

[ProSense]

53. I addressed

one claim: http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=3076131

And was about to address another:

Absurdly false: "Spends $105bn a year on employing 7,000 private mercenaries in Iraq. "

Who the hell believes that the U.S. is spending $105 billion annually on contractors in Iraq? At the height of the warr, the cost was about $150 billion for the war.

The current budget request is $117 billion for Afghanistan and Iraq. Between the State Department and the Pentagon, the amount for contractors is about $8 billion (including $3 billion for the Pentagon).

I mean, the entire post is about throwing out false and misleading claims.

[leveymg]

54. I can see how one might calculate 70% as going to contractors

They make up about that percentage of US-paid personnel in the two countries at this point. http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Articles/2013/05/10/US-Troops-Replaced-by-an-Outsourced-Army-in-Afghanistan.aspx#page1

By DAVID FRANCIS, The Fiscal Times
May 10, 2013

The United States is preparing to withdraw the majority of its troops from Afghanistan next year, ending more than a decade of war that has cost this country hundreds of billion of dollars and 2,126 lives to date.

But the military withdrawal does not mean the United States is out of the country entirely. The country is leaving tens of thousands of contractors behind.

According to the latest contractor census performed by the industry group Professional Overseas Contractors, there are currently 110,404 contractors still working in Afghanistan. Of these, 33,444 are Americans. The rest are either Afghan or from another country.

These workers do everything from serve food to cut hair to provide security. They outnumber U.S. troops by nearly 40,000. For every one American soldier, there are 1.46 contractors.

The vast majority of these contractors are in the private security business, working for the State Department to protect diplomats.

[ProSense]

57. It's false.

At the height of the war with more than 90,000 contractors in Iraq, the tab was about $15 billion per year.

[MotherPetrie]

10. I do consider myself very gullible. I let myself fall for his campaign lies not once but twice.

[NoOneMan]

11. No, Obama is clearly a Democrat

The more concerning question is: what does it really mean anymore to be a Democrat?

[HardTimes99]

48. You, my friend, have nailed it - my compliments!-nt

[ellie]

12. I will say it again:

Power will never be given up. No matter who is president. It is over.

[Harmony Blue]

15. It is not over but the system may collapse

because this trajectory is not sustainable.

[ellie]

19. I meant over meaning that

to think that the power will be given up is a ridiculous notion. It is over, it is done. I was reading thread titles and saw one that suggested that we, as Americans, have allowed this because we are fearful and I agree, especially after 9/11. I don't understand this fear. Scared of what? Terrorists coming to get us? It is laughable to me to be scared over something so silly. Terrorists aren't coming to get us.

[malaise]

13. LOL

[ProSense]

14. .

[malaise]

16. What I can't take is the give me everything I want or else

Obama has a pretty good batting record.
That said he didn't start this surveillance mess but he will have to clean it up.
Fire every single person associated with Bushco and the destruction of the Magna Carta.

[ProSense]

21. Agree.

"That said he didn't start this surveillance mess but he will have to clean it up. "

You have people stating they want to get rid of the FISA court, which was enacted into law under President Carter.

There is a discussion to be had, but the goal of some is to lay it all at the feet of this President in order to make all sorts of ridiculous claims.

[malaise]

25. Yep the discussion is crazy

Everything done over 40 plus years is Obama's fault

[KharmaTrain]

79. Now You've Done It...

...under you go!!!

[malaise]

81. ROFL

Hello There KharmaTrain

[Skidmore]

17. Added to the list of nots...

American by birth
one of us
Christian
....

Build the list of "nots" and trace them back to point of origin.

[ucrdem]

18. But he's more Nixonian than Nixon and more Stalinist than Stalin!

Also, he wears a funny hat! And now I don't have to hear it from my wingnut friends and relatives, I get the emails right here on DU!

[bvar22]

20. Is THIS too much to expect from a Democrat?

[ProSense]

27. You know what they say:

Actions speak louder than words:

Reaganomics was/is a failure

Yeah, Reagan was right: Social Security has nothing to do with the deficit. Still, Reagan's legacy of tax increases is based solely on taxing Social Security.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002209602

Here are the things I expect a Democrat to do:

Obama’s stimulus package aids people with disabilities

By Mike Ervin,

<...>

The first is a one-time additional payment of $250 to people who receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and other selected Social Security benefits. Many SSI recipients live on less than $10,000 a year, and so this additional income will make a significant difference.

Second, the stimulus package also allocates $500 million to help the Social Security Administration reduce the processing time for claims and appeals decisions. During the Bush years, the number of people awaiting final determination on their Social Security disability claims more than doubled to 755,000. Many were waiting two years or more for determination, without income. Obama’s allocation should help end this disgrace.

<...>

More creatively, Obama provided $140 million to support centers for independent living. These nonresidential centers are run by people with disabilities and are focal points for services and advocacy. There are hundreds of these centers throughout the United States, providing thousands of good jobs for people with disabilities and others in their communities.

The stimulus package will also invest in the future by providing $540 million for vocational rehabilitation programs, which assist people with disabilities in obtaining higher education and jobs.

- more -

http://progressive.org/mag/mpervin030509.html

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act included a number of provisions of particular concern to people with disabilities.

•The Act included $500 million to help the Social Security Administration reduce its backlog in processing disability applications;
•The Act supplied $12.2 billion in funding to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA);
•The Act also provided $87 billion to states to bolster their Medicaid programs during the downturn; and,
•The Act provided over $500 million in funding for vocational rehabilitation services to help with job training, education and placement.
•The Act provided over $140 million in funding for independent living centers across the country.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/disabilities

[bvar22]

43. Jack didn't just "Give Away" the Family Cow either.

He got a handful of beans too, so that his mother didn't kill him.




New Rule (Passed by Congress and signed by President Obama) signals Kiss of Death for Pensions
http://www.cnbc.com/id/100694955

Wealthy win lion's share of major tax breaks
http://www.boston.com/business/news/2013/05/29/wealthy-win-lion-share-major-tax-breaks/Ua0UyYle21EUXub7g1suCI/story.html

Half of America is in poverty, and its creeping toward 75%
http://www.alternet.org/economy/real-numbers-half-america-poverty-and-its-creeping-toward-75-0

Wealth gap widens as labor's share of income falls
http://www.nbcnews.com/business/wealth-gap-widens-labors-share-income-falls-1B6097385

As the Economy Recovers, the Wealth Gap Widens
http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/rick-newman/2013/03/11/as-the-economy-recovers-the-wealth-gap-widens

Top One Percent Captured 121 Percent Of All Income Gains
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/12/top-one-percent-income-gains_n_2670455.html

Corporate Profits Hit Record High While Worker Wages Hit Record Low
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2012/12/03/1270541/corporate-profits-wages-record/?mobile=nc


These things ^ do NOT happen by accident.
They are the direct results of 30 years of NeoLiberal "Free Market" Economic Policy,
and as the Obama White House secretly works on the NEW "Free Trade" deal (NAFTA on Steroids) I wonder what handful of beans he will use to sell it to America,
or if he even bothers with that anymore.

We KNOW what works:
the Economic Policies of the 50s & 60s (Tax Rates and Trade Policy, International and Interstate with a Liberal dose of Trust Busting and Fair Competition Regulation).

We just aren't doing what works.


[font color=firebrick][center]"There are forces within the Democratic Party who want us to sound like kinder, gentler Republicans.
I want a party that will STAND UP for Working Americans."
---Paul Wellstone [/font][/center]
[center][/font]
[font size=1]photo by bvar22
Shortly before Sen Wellstone was killed[/center][/font]




You will know them by their [font size=3]WORKS.[/font]

[ProSense]

62. FYI

Reposted from here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022928129

Recently, an Alternet article citing current poverty data was posted here: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022906982

Half of America is in poverty, and its creeping toward 75%
http://www.alternet.org/economy/real-numbers-half-america-poverty-and-its-creeping-toward-75-0

If you click on the first link, it takes you to the following Census data:

The data presented here are from the Current Population Survey (CPS), 2012 Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC), the source of official poverty estimates. The CPS ASEC is a sample survey of approximately 100,000 household nationwide. These data reflect conditions in calendar year 2011.

• In 2011, the official poverty rate was 15.0 percent. There were 46.2 million people in poverty.
  
  
• After 3 consecutive years of increases, neither the official poverty rate nor the number of people in poverty were statisti¬cally different from the 2010 estimates1
  
  
• The 2011 poverty rates for most demographic groups examined were not statistically different from their 2010 rates. Poverty rates were lower in 2011 than in 2010 for six groups: Hispanics, males, the foreign-born, nonciti¬zens, people living in the South, and people living inside metropol¬itan statistical areas but outside principal cities. Poverty rates went up between 2010 and 2011 for naturalized citizens.
  
  
• For most groups, the number of people in poverty either decreased or did not show a statistically significant change. The number of people in poverty decreased for noncitizens, people living in the South, and people living inside metropolitan statistical areas but outside principal cities between 2010 and 2011. The number of naturalized citizens in poverty increased.
  
  
• The poverty rate in 2011 for chil¬dren under age 18 was 21.9 per-cent. The poverty rate for people aged 18 to 64 was 13.7 percent, while the rate for people aged 65 and older was 8.7 percent. None of the rates for these age groups were statistically different from their 2010 estimates.2

http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/about/overview/

Go to the "Publications" tab for more information.

Income, Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2011
http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/income_wealth/cb12-172.html

Sex

• The poverty rate for males decreased between 2010 and 2011, from 14.0 percent to 13.6 percent, while the poverty rate for females was 16.3 percent, not statistically different from the 2010 estimate.

<...>

Health Insurance Coverage

• The number of people with health insurance increased to 260.2 million in 2011 from 256.6 million in 2010, as did the percentage of people with health insurance (84.3 percent in 2011, 83.7 percent in 2010).
  
  
• The percentage of people covered by private health insurance in 2011 was not statistically different from 2010, at 63.9 percent. This was the first time in the last 10 years that the rate of private health insurance coverage has not decreased. The percentage covered by employment-based health insurance in 2011 was not statistically different from 2010, at 55.1 percent.
  
  
• The percentage of people covered by government health insurance increased from 31.2 percent to 32.2 percent. The percentage covered by Medicaid increased from 15.8 percent in 2010 to 16.5 percent in 2011. The percentage covered by Medicare also rose over the period, from 14.6 percent to 15.2 percent. The percentage covered by Medicaid in 2011 was higher than the percentage covered by Medicare.
  
  
• In 2011, 9.7 percent of children under 19 (7.6 million) were without health insurance. Neither estimate is significantly different from the corresponding 2010 estimate. The uninsured rate also remained statistically unchanged for those age 26 to 34 and people age 45 to 64. It declined, however, for people age 19 to 25, age 35 to 44 and those age 65 and older.
  
  
• The uninsured rate for children in poverty (13.8 percent) was higher than the rate for all children (9.4 percent).
  
  
• In 2011, the uninsured rates decreased as household income increased from 25.4 percent for those in households with annual income less than $25,000 to 7.8 percent in households with income of $75,000 or more.
  
  <...>

- more -

http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/income_wealth/cb12-172.html

Dire information, but I would say a decrease in the poverty rate among most groups between 2010 and 2011 is big news, as is the information on health insurance coverage.

[bvar22]

63. Is support for Raising the Cap...

... instead of lobbying for Cuts to Benefits too much to ask from a Democratic President?

[mick063]

24. Cheerleaders out in full force.

Doesn't matter how much you wave the pom poms, his legacy is already set in stone. A billionaire panderer.

There is no saving his legacy now. Give up on the last ditch effort to do so.

I have to believe that most of the cheerleaders are either too young to have experienced what we used to be (don't know any different), have incrementally changed in small portions over time (don't realize the differences, ie. boiled frogs), or think of politics similar to rooting for your favorite football team (nothing else matters except that our team wins)


I don't know how else to explain it unless they are true believers in supply side, trickle down, Freidman economics. If that is the case then they are Republicans without knowing it.

[ProSense]

30. Who

"Doesn't matter how much you wave the pom poms, his legacy is already set in stone. A billionaire panderer. "

...expanded the safety net for all Americans by signing health care reform into law.

Three words: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022853977

[still_one]

33. really, I've been through the Viet Nam War, Civil Rights, and multiple assassinations and so have a

lot of other DUers most likely. So in your infinite wisdom anyone who supports this administration is "too young to have experienced what we used to be"

You Speak for yourself only, not other DUers are or are NOT.

I love the intolerance of other people's views, by those who think there views are the only ones that count

[mick063]

49. I have intolerance for people that use selective quotes to change the context.

I have intolerance for cheerleaders that gloss over terrible policy.

I have intolerance for those that fabricate my intentions (ie. "Speaking for people other than myself&quot

I have intolerance for those that accuse me of thinking that my views are the only ones that count when they obviously believe that only the cheerleader view counts.

[still_one]

70. Please put me on ignore

[mick063]

82. Nope

I only Ignore "Fox and Friends"

[still_one]

84. LOL, then philosophically you and I are on the same page on that. I never ignore anyone on DU, and

I NEVER watch faux, and very rarely watch the MSM. I do watch bloomberg though, because they at least try to attempt at balance

take care

[Number23]

76. We "used to be" a country that kept millions of its citizens from voting

and did everything in its power to create a permanent underclass of people with the wrong skin color.

A shit load of progress has been made by dragging the dominant culture kicking and screaming into the 21st century and you are wrong as hell if you think that I or the vast majority of Americans have ANY interest in going back to what this country "used to be."

[still_one]

28. If posters really believe that, why don't they just join the green party and see how far they will

get

[bahrbearian]

42. You mean we should move left? Away from Center Right?

[MrSlayer]

29. He's a DLC, third way style Democrat.

Which is to say a Reaganite. He's no New Deal style Democrat. That's for sure.

[Aerows]

31. You and a handful of others

with which we are familiar, would decide eating babies and bombing American cities was okay if Obama said so.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

32. Sure, he's a Democrat. So was LBJ who had a few squabbles with the left wing of the party.

[still_one]

35. and LBJ had a lot of blood on his hands from Viet Nam, which some seem to conveniently forget, yet

at the same time brought us Medicare and the Civil Rights Act, which stand as foundations of modern Democratic legislation.

I also believe that the ACA, Gay rights, and other significant changes under Obama will also be regarded as major achievements in American history, though those that have selective vision will only view the bad without the good, or the good without the bad, instead of having everything in perspective

[duffyduff]

68. The only "achievements" Obama will be remembered for

will be his systematic destroying of public education and his attempts to undo the New Deal.

[duffyduff]

66. You obviously don't remember LBJ.

Obama is nowhere close to being a liberal and has far more in common with the far right.

[still_one]

69. far right? I don't know what you are taking, but must be good. Do you know what the far right is?

[quinnox]

34. If he continues the way he has been going

He will go down as a very mediocre president. I don't know if he has it in him, but he needs to take a hard left turn, and fast.

[ProSense]

36. "He will go down as a very mediocre president. "

"I don't know if he has it in him, but he needs to take a hard left turn, and fast."

Bullshit! Given the past Presidents, your claim is wishful thinking. Still, it really is the reason so many are trying to attack his credibility.

[bahrbearian]

41. "Obama is no Democrat" Gee, thanks for letting us know. If only we gullible Democrats had known this

[99Forever]

37. Ahhh.. a fresh pile of stinkbait.

Isn't that special?

Bwahahahahahhahahahhahahahhaha.

Funny stuff.

[whatchamacallit]

38. Whatever he is, I'm ready for something else

and better.

[RetroLounge]

47. +100

RL

[bahrbearian]

39. "Obama is no Democrat" Gee, thanks for letting us know. If only we gullible Democrats had known this

Sorry No blue link.

[DJ13]

40. "I would be considered a moderate Republican"

Obama's own words.

http://abcnews.go.com/ABC_Univision/Politics/obama-considered-moderate-republican-1980s/story?id=17973080

[liberal_at_heart]

83. +1

[hfojvt]

44. sorta the No true scotsman fallacy

Last edited Sun Jun 23, 2013, 04:44 PM - Edit history (1)

he's not the kind of Democrat that we were hoping for http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022085948

He's not on the side of the 80%.

[PufPuf23]

45. President Barack Obama believes that if he were president 25 years ago,

President Barack Obama believes that if he were president 25 years ago, his economic policies would make him a moderate Republican.

Video and article at link.

http://abcnews.go.com/ABC_Univision/Politics/obama-considered-moderate-republican-1980s/story?id=17973080#.UcdNMPnn-70


POTUS Obama is the current leader of the Democratic party. I have been a registered Democratic Party member for longer in membership and in voting than POTUS Obama. I voted for POTUS Obama in 2008 and 2012.

I have been disappointed but still he was our best choice. I did not vote expecting GOP policies and appointments. I did expect a return to fair rule of law and better international relations.

PS I hope the rumor is true that Prosense will take a year of silence in reflection once it reaches 100,000 posts.

[progressoid]

52. ..."I'd be considered a moderate Republican"

[PufPuf23]

59. Thanks. I could not get video to imbed. nt

[duffyduff]

65. There is nothing moderate about him. He is far right on most issues. n/t

[RetroLounge]

46. "Obama is no Democrat"

I finally agree with you.



RL

[Cleita]

50. He's registered as one and runs as a Democrat. Really, he's a DLCer. It should be a separate

party. It could replace the now disintegrating Republican Party. As far as I'm concerned, having been brought up through the Presidencies of Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry Truman, I find very little in his and Hillary Clintons political philosophies that embrace the principles of the old Democratic Party of being the party of labor, unions, minorities and the working class. Chained CPI, agreeing to cut social programs like head start and meals on wheels is not what a real Democrat does. Sorry. Facts are facts.

[Jamaal510]

56. Whoever that says this about Obama doesn't know WTF they're talking about,

or they're just trying to troll people. I mean, why else have Republicans in Congress been opposing him at every turn? Under him, unemployment has gone down. He has pushed for higher taxes on the top 1% and for a Jobs Bill. He has drawn down both of our wars and ended one. There is expanded access to health care, the auto bailout, Fair Pay Act, he appointed several liberal female SC justices (including our 1st Latina justice), and he was the first incumbent president to officially support gay rights. Apparently none of that matters to the "Obama is a Republican" crowd, though. For anybody to make the claim that Obama isn't a Democrat is to basically dismiss all of his accomplishments and the policies that he has advocated on behalf of average Americans. There's no way anyone can tell me with a straight face that the typical Republican would support that stuff.
All this is is just a different version of the "both parties are the same" BS.

[duffyduff]

64. It's all "kabuki theater." ALL of them are on the same side with few differences.

Obama is not a Democrat, certainly not the kind I have known.

He is a neolib which is diametrically opposed to everything Democrats stand for.

[kiranon]

71. Agree and thank you. n/t

[bvar22]

58. Is support for Organized LABOR too much to expect from today's Democratic Leadership?

Ed Schults responds to White House Insults to Organized LABOR after Arkansas Democratic Primary, 2010
http://videocafe.crooksandliars.com/heather/ed-schultz-if-it-wasnt-labor-barack-obama-

[ProSense]

60. Here

In case you missed it: Good moves by the Obama administration
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002540300

[Apophis]

67. A real Democrat was someone like Paul Wellstone.

He was the epitome of liberal. Obama is no Paul Wellstone. Not even close.

[ProSense]

72. Paul Wellstone voted for DOMA

"He was the epitome of liberal. Obama is no Paul Wellstone. Not even close."

See how that works?

[Apophis]

73. Paul Wellstone would never support domestic spying.

Why do I even click on your posts? They're nothing but love-fests about a goddamn politician.

It's creepy, really. Get outside once in a while and enjoy the sun. Smell the flowers. Listen to the birds.

[dflprincess]

80. Paul Wellstone also publicly repented that vote.

Unlike some politicians he was willing to listen to and learn from those he had hurt and disappointed with that vote. (And Stonewall DFL continued to support him.)

It was his regret over that vote that helped him listen to his conscience and vote against the Iraq war even though he was told a "no" vote would cost him the election.

[geek tragedy]

77. Paul Wellstone was an exceptional Democrat.

He also would never be able to get elected nationwide.

[Arctic Dave]

78. I agree, Obama is no Democrat.

He is a repug in sheep clothing.

I'm sure he will be be paid handsomely for his "speaking fees" after he is done being prersident.

[ProSense]

85. Addressing false claims

Reposted from elsewhere.

False: "Retains the Federal subsidies to the oil business, despite big oil having already had a decade of record profits "

Obama has proposed ending oil subsidies in every budget and other proposals. Congress, specifically Republicans, oppose it.

Obama budget seeks to end oil, gas subsidies
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=433x314016

Statements On Obama Budget From NRDC, CAP, & SEIA
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022671045

This is for the Ron Paul libertarians:



http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=3076131

Another claim, that's absurdly false: "Spends $105bn a year on employing 7,000 private mercenaries in Iraq. "

Who the hell believes that the U.S. is spending $105 billion annually on contractors in Iraq? At the height of the warr, the cost was about $150 billion for the war.

The current budget request is $117 billion for Afghanistan and Iraq. Between the State Department and the Pentagon, the amount for contractors is about $8 billion (including $3 billion for the Pentagon).

At the height of the war with more than 90,000 contractors in Iraq, the tab was about $15 billion per year.

It's a BS tactic of throwing out false and misleading claims to fan the anti-Obama flames.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10023075105#post53